Deuces Wild is the most popular wild card video poker game. All four 2s act as wild cards, substituting for any card to make the best possible hand. This creates hands that don't exist in standard poker — Five of a Kind, for example — and shifts the minimum winning hand up to Three of a Kind.
Full Pay Deuces Wild returns 100.76%, one of the few video poker games where the player has a mathematical edge. But the strategy is completely different from Jacks or Better, and using JoB strategy will cost you roughly 3-4% in return.
Hand Rankings
Deuces Wild uses a different hand ranking than standard poker. Because wild cards make hands easier to complete, the minimum payout starts at Three of a Kind:
| Hand | Full Pay | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Natural Royal Flush | 800-for-1 | ~1 in 45,000 |
| Four Deuces | 200-for-1 | ~1 in 4,900 |
| Wild Royal Flush | 25-for-1 | ~1 in 560 |
| Five of a Kind | 15-for-1 | ~1 in 320 |
| Straight Flush | 9-for-1 | ~1 in 240 |
| Four of a Kind | 5-for-1 | ~1 in 15 |
| Full House | 3-for-1 | ~1 in 40 |
| Flush | 2-for-1 | ~1 in 60 |
| Straight | 2-for-1 | ~1 in 55 |
| Three of a Kind | 1-for-1 | ~1 in 3.5 |
Notice that Four of a Kind hits about once every 15 hands. That's dramatically more often than JoB (~1 in 420). Wild cards make quads routine, which is why they only pay 5-for-1.
Strategy by Number of Deuces
The most important decision in Deuces Wild is how to play around your wild cards. Strategy splits cleanly based on how many deuces you're dealt.
Four Deuces (Hold All Five? No.)
Hold all four deuces and discard the fifth card — unless the fifth card completes a Natural Royal Flush. Four Deuces pays 200-for-1 regardless.
Three Deuces
- Hold a Wild Royal or Five of a Kind
- Hold three to a Natural Royal Flush (e.g., 2-2-2-J♠-Q♠ — hold all five only if suited)
- Otherwise, hold only the three deuces and draw two
Two Deuces
- Hold any made Four of a Kind or better
- Hold four to a Royal Flush
- Hold four to a Five of a Kind draw
- Otherwise, hold only the two deuces and draw three
One Deuce
- Hold any made hand of Three of a Kind or better
- Hold four to a Royal Flush
- Hold four to a Straight Flush
- Hold three to a Royal Flush
- Hold four to a Flush or open-ended Straight
- Otherwise, hold only the deuce and draw four
No Deuces
This is where most mistakes happen:
- Hold any made hand (Two Pair or better — but see the Two Pair rule below)
- Hold four to a Royal Flush
- Hold four to a Straight Flush
- Hold three to a Royal Flush
- Hold four to a Flush
- Hold a pair (any pair, even 3s)
- Hold four to an open-ended Straight
- Hold three to a Straight Flush
- If nothing above applies, discard all five cards
Common Mistakes
Holding high cards with no deuce. In JoB, you hold a lone Ace or King. In Deuces Wild, a single high card is worthless — there's no payout for a pair of Aces. Discard it.
Keeping Two Pair. Two Pair pays the same as Three of a Kind (1-for-1) in Deuces Wild. If you're dealt Two Pair, break one pair and draw to improve — a Full House or better is the goal. This is the single most counterintuitive play for JoB veterans.
Not discarding all five. When you have no deuce and no pair and no four-card draw, throw away everything. A fresh five cards gives you the best chance of drawing into deuces.
Identifying Full Pay
The key number is the Four of a Kind payout. On a full-pay machine, Four of a Kind pays 5-for-1. If it pays 4-for-1, you're on NSUD (Not So Ugly Deuces) or worse. Always check:
| Variant | Four of a Kind | RTP |
|---|---|---|
| Full Pay Deuces Wild | 5 | 100.76% |
| NSUD | 4 | 99.73% |
| Colorado Deuces | 4 | 98.91% |
| Airport/Illinois Deuces | 4 | 96.77% |
The Deuces Wild family is large — Bonus Deuces Wild, Loose Deuces, and Double Deuces each have different pay structures and require their own strategies.
Bottom Line
Deuces Wild is the highest-returning standard video poker game when played at full pay with correct strategy. The catch: the strategy is radically different from JoB. You must unlearn habits like holding high cards and keeping Two Pair. Practice the deuce-count system until it's automatic, always bet max coins, and verify the Four of a Kind payout before you sit down.